Australian Open: Novak Djokovic to have low-key build-up to first grand slam of year
Novak Djokovic has revealed he will have a low-key build-up to the defence of his Australian Open title next month.
Last Updated: 07/01/14 3:49pm
The world No 2 has decided not to play in any of the warm-up events other than this week's Mubadala World Tennis Championships.
The Serbian will play his first match in Abu Dhabi on Friday against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, with the Frenchman having beaten Britain's Andy Murray on Thursday.
However he will not feature in any other tournaments before starting the defence of his Australian Open title in Melbourne on January 13.
"My first tournament is going to be (Abu Dhabi) and the first official one is going to be in Melbourne," he said.
"I'm not going to play in the opening weeks of the season because I feel like
I didn't have enough time to get myself in the right shape for competition mode.
"It's why I've selected to play only in these few matches here and then move on to Melbourne."
The Australian Open will be Djokovic's first grand slam since adding Boris Becker to his coaching staff.
The 26-year-old feels the six-time major winner will help both technically on court as well mentally in his preparation for events.
"He had a great serve and he can help me in different parts of my game on court as well, including the mental aspect," Djokovic added.
"So, at the end of the day, the combination of Boris and (head coach) Marian (Vajda), who is still on board and still part of our team, will hopefully be the winning combination for me and will mean that I will manage to get better and improve my game."
